Quotes
We’re in this very uncomfortable position again, of waiting for men who don’t have a track record of necessarily making decisions that support peace, to try and calibrate their response in a way that they think will shore up their military position without letting things or forcing things to escalate further,
the Guardian’s senior international affairs correspondent, Emma Graham-Harrison, tells Michael Safi
Haniyeh presented a pragmatic face to the mediators but internally inside Hamas led a hard line,
the source said
We will exact a very heavy price for any act of aggression against us from any arena,
he added
Israel is highly prepared for any scenario, both defensively and offensively,
Netanyahu said in a video released by his office during a visit to a Home Front Command baseYahya Sinwar is the commander... and he is a dead man."
He is the main figure that Israel holds responsible for October 7, with Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari saying at the time
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was a moderate because he gave Israel the option of peacefully dissolving itself, opening its borders to millions of hostile immigrants, changing its name to Palestine, incorporating Hamas's military into the state's army, and accepting Islamic law."
Israeli journalist Daniel Rubenstein wroteIf Ismail Haniyeh was 'moderate and pragmatic' as every media outlet claims, that means his open Jew-hate and repeated calls for the violent destruction of Israel are a 'moderate and pragmatic' position to hold. And what does that tell us about the status of Jews today."
Dave Rich, an author who writes books about antisemitism, saidWithin Hamas Haniyeh had a certain position, but within this organization which is not a moderate one."
Goren addedIt certainly and completely depends on the perceptions of who you talk to. Obviously, the Israelis and the U.S. consider all of Hamas, including its leadership as extremist, they consider the organization a terrorist organization. And many of them are not willing to enter into a conversation about 'is this person more moderate than the other?'
He saidHe's a hard-liner, no doubt, but he's a politician so he's a good negotiator and he's more pragmatic,
Salem saidWhat is a 'very moderate leader' of an Islamist jihadist death cult that perpetrated the deadliest terror attack since 9/11 on October 7? Alex Crawford, what on earth are you talking about?"
Sharing a clip of Sky News' coverage on X, he wroteHe was also considered a very moderate leader for Hamas."
Indeed, when Sky News broke the story on TV, Special Correspondent Alex Crawford said
It is too soon to tell what the impact of his death will have on negotiations (for a ceasefire deal in Gaza), and so I'm not going to speculate on that, especially in light of the broader dynamics and set of events unfolding in the region right now,
Sullivan said
But I also discovered a long history of profound — and often rancorous — internal debates over how the state should be preserved. Can a nation use the methods of terrorism? Can it harm innocent civilians in the process? What are the costs? Where is the line?"
Bergman continuedThe government of Israel employs a policy of preventative strikes which cause the death of terrorists,
an Israeli judge ruled in December 2006.It is decided that it cannot be determined in advance that every targeted killing is prohibited according to customary international law,
the judgment concluded
These strikes at times also harm innocent civilians. Does the state thus act illegally
asked head judge Aharon BarakFrom what we gather, it is the political leadership based in Doha, headed by Haniyeh, that... has been pressing Sinwar... to accept a ceasefire,
Lovatt said
Hamas broadly speaking will not be affected, as it has plenty of leadership material”.
Joost Hiltermann, Middle East programme director at the International Crisis Group, saidHaniyeh has been a moderating force... His removal could embolden hardliners within the movement,
Relatively speaking, inside the group ... he said